BP clicks its heels to build $800m wind farm in Kansas

It may have done its environmental standing untold damage in the wake of last year's Gulf of Mexico oil spill, but oil giant BP has this week set out to underline its position as a major player in America's fast-expanding renewables industry, revealing plans to invest $800m in a giant onshore wind farm in Kansas.

The company's wind energy arm yesterday confirmed it plans to build the 419MW Flat Ridge 2 project, with construction expected to start within the next three months.

Wholesale power provider Associated Electric Cooperative (AECI) has also agreed to buy 314MW of the energy capacity from Flat Ridge 2 under a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA).

BP Wind Energy said it is now actively marketing the remaining capacity to other customers in the Midwest.

The proposed wind farm will use 262 General Electric 1.6MW turbines, located on a 66,000-acre site approximately 43 miles southwest of Wichita in south-central Kansas.

At a "blade signing" event yesterday, John Graham, president and chief executive of BP Wind Energy, said the investment was designed to boost the local economy.

"The Flat Ridge 2 Wind Farm is an investment of approximately $800m and demonstrates BP's continued commitment to the state of Kansas," he said.

"Today's announcement of a PPA with AECI is a milestone in the project's development that will create some 500 jobs during peak construction and will provide over $1m annually to the local communities without impacting traditional farming and ranching activities."

BP already has 11 operating wind farms in the US, with almost 1,600MW capacity, including the neighbouring Flat Ridge 1 project. Two more wind farms are already under construction and at least two more are planned for 2012.

Speaking at a renewable energy technology conference in Washington recently, BP Alternative Energy chief executive Katrina Landis said investing in wind power was a key strategy in the US, because of the country's "favourable" physical and public policy climate.

She also said BP is ahead of its target to invest $8bn in alternative energy sources by 2015, and now expects to have invested around $7bn at the end of 2011, $4bn of which will be in the US.